


Don't You Dare!

by fanfics_await_you



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Fluff
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-25
Updated: 2018-11-25
Packaged: 2019-08-29 03:46:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,628
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16736502
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fanfics_await_you/pseuds/fanfics_await_you
Summary: I lost my little brother at the grocery, you're now best friends, and holy hell you're cute.





	Don't You Dare!

**Author's Note:**

> This is from my old account. Not my best work but people seemed to like it so here?

“SEBASTIAN, WHERE ARE YOU?! SEB, C’MON!.... WE CAN GET ICE CREAM AND THAT STUPID CEREAL THAT YOU WANT! _You little bastard, where are you?!_ ” I feel like I’m talking to myself as I run around the grocery store.

One minute I’m telling my 8 year old step-brother that _no, he cannot have the sugar-soaked, unnaturally bright cereal_ and the next minute he’s running screaming ‘I HATE YOU, NESSA. I HATE YOU AND YOUR BORING CEREAL!!’

As I yell promises of sugar and rainbow cereal, creeping worry begins to rise up my throat. _Oh no, oh no, oh no. Amy, my step-mom, is actually going to kill me._

“SEBASTIAN!!! YOU LITTLE BASTA- Monkey, WHERE ARE YOU??” 

Even as I attract stares as I yell up the aisles, I begin to run scenarios in my head.

_He’s hiding in the fresh produce section and is probably using a watermelon as a football._

_A random stranger offered him cereal and now’s he’s driving off with them._

_One of Amy’s friends is here, found him and is telling her as we speak._

_He’s standing right in front of me._

He’s standing right in front of me.

“SEBASTIAN!!! Oh my GOD!” I (not so mildly) scream as I scoop him up in a bear hug as he fights me off.

“Not now! Nessa, get off!” Sebastian pushes off me embarrassedly. 

I take a step back, to scold him, when I notice a stranger standing next to us with a _very_ amused expression painted over his face. Seb himself moves back to stand next to the stranger.

“I…Um…” I struggle with my words as I attempt to speak with the man.

Oh, and by the way, since I don’t think I mentioned it, this stranger also happens to be a walking, breathing, blond Adonis. _Keep your chill, Vanessa_ I chide myself, _he only looks like a living god_. Cutting through my trance, my little brother unwittingly saves me from myself.

“Vanessa, this is Steve. When I decided to go to the park across the street, I sorta, kinda, nearlygothitbyacar,”

“WHAT?!”

“Just wait! See, I’m fine. SO, then Steve walks up, we started talking and he said we should come find you!!!! I even told him how you wouldn’t let me get my cereal, but he still said it was a good idea to go back. He’s awesome, right?” My brother then sums it up with that big, toothy grin that makes you feel like you’re looking straight at the Sun.

I let out a long sigh as I struggle to remain angry at my idiotic little brother and his very attractive friend. With nothing else to say, I thank the random stranger.

“Thank you SO MUCH for bringing him back. I was REALLY worried. He’s only eight and sometimes we have our… differences… I’m honestly so thankful that you stopped him from getting hit by a car. If there’s anything I could do for you, I’d be happy to help.”

As soon as the words fly from my mouth not only do I realise that first, the last bit sounded like innuendo (oh GoD n o), but also that I’ve GRABBED his stunning HAND. As smoothly as I can pull off, I step back while withdrawing my hand. _Well done, Vanessa,_ I think, _I practically propositioned him and then groped his hand while doing it._ I grabbed Seb’s hand and turn to face Steve when I notice that, in fact, I am not the only one blushing. 

_THIS GREEK GOD IS BLUSHING BECAUSE I GRABBED HIS HAND. OH GOD NO, ABORT, ABORT. ABORT MISSION!!_

Deciding that I’ve done enough embarrassing for the day, I mumble a terrified goodbye and turn to leave. Then my _darling_ brother just has to make things more complicated.

“What??! Nessa, no! I don’t want to leave yet. Steve’s my friend!!”

He throws my hand away and almost tackles Steve. I stand gobsmacked; not that Seb chosen a stranger over me (it’s happened before; long story). It’s the fact that Steve just smiles down at him and ruffles his hair. They’ve know each other for, what, 10 minutes max?! Seb doesn’t let anyone, I MEAN ANYONE, touch his hair! He must take at least 10 minutes _every_ morning to spike it up and Steve _gets to touch the hair_. It’s at this moment that something shifts in my chest; somehow, I have a tickling feeling that this _Steve_ is not going to just disappear. And honestly, I’m not sure how I feel about that.

“Nessa, c’mon! Don’t be a meanie! Let Steve walk with us while you shop! Please, please, pleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaase Nessa! Otherwise…. Otherwise…. I’ll tell Amy that you let me cross the road by myself!”

I SWEAR TO –THAT LITTLE – ARGH! Steve looks prepared to apologise or laugh, but I just nod and walk away. Let’s get this over with. 

Seb punches the air in excitement, grabs Steve’s wrist and runs forward to match pace with me. Steve and Seb talk nonstop and it creates an almost comfortable backdrop as I walk around. Occasionally, Seb grabs something off the shelf, which I replace whenever he turns away, but even then he doesn’t stop talking. I start humming to myself as the boys continue to endlessly talk.

“So, it’s Vanessa, right?” Steve speaks, breaking me violently out of my own thoughts.

As is becoming my style, I stumble before talking, “Uh, um, yeah. That’s me.” 

He nods slightly before speaking again, “So…. Where do you work?”

I give him a sideways glance at the slightly awkward conversation opener, but I decided to take the bait anyway, “Well, I’m just out of NYU with a biochem degree, so I’m looking for a research job. But for the moment, I work in a diner. What about you?”

He looks surprised, THEN BLUSHES AGAIN ( _LORD, SPARE ME_ ), nods, nods _again_ before spluttering out “Oh, ok. Me, I’m… Ex-military. I’m currently in veterans’ affairs. But yeah, that’s pretty awesome... The biochem degree! It must’ve been difficult going through college with a kid.”

I felt like the rhythm of the conversation was finally smoothing out. Hey, this isn’t so ba- Hang on. _It must’ve been difficult going through college with a kid…._ Where did her get that ide- Oh no, he wouldn- Not Seb, he’s my BROT- 

“What?! Oh! Seb is my STEP-BROTHER! I’m 22 and Seb’s 8…. No, no, NO. I just hang out with him on weekends to give Amy and Dad a break! God, Seb, my kid?! No.”

_I’VE MADE HIM BLUSH AGAIN, BY GOD SINCE WHEN HAVE I HAD THE ABILITY TO MAKE GODS FLUSH?! WHAT IS THIS?!?_

_HE’S EVEN REDDER THAN BEFORE!! LOOK AT HIM; HE’S TRYING REALLY HARD TO APOLOGISE, BUT HE’S SO EMBARRASSED HE CAN BARELY SPEAK. OH DEAR LORD, SAVE ME! THIS MAN, THIS BOY, LOOKS LIKE HE’S ABOUT TO PASS OUT._

_SEB, YOU IDIOT, STOP LAUGHING. GOD, WHY ME? WHAT HAVE I DONE TO DESERVE THIS EXTREMELY HOT, ADORABLE, BLUSHING ADONIS IN MY LIFE?!?!_

I take some breaths, calm myself and defuse the situation. Steve apologies profusely, using phrases that I haven’t heard outside my grandmother’s house, and we all go about our business.

* * *

 

Eventually I realise that I really can’t buy anything else and that I really don’t want to stop talking to Steve (C’mon, Vanessa, woman up!). As I come to this realisation, Steve also turns to look at his watch. His eyes widen slightly and before I know it, we’re all running to checkout. Steve mumbles about ‘a stupid meeting he _really_ needs to go to’ and ‘of course, the one day he actually has something better to do’ ( _STOP SMILING VANESSA, HE’S TALKING ABOUT SEBASTIAN!_ ). We rush though the checkout, reach the shop’s doors and pause. 

Seb’s almost in tears at the thought of Steve leaving and I must say, my feelings are similar. 

He’s just  so _kind_ ; like honest to God, he just does whatever’s right because he didn’t even think about it, it’s just his instinct. Steve also treats Sebastian really well; ‘ _judge a person on how they treat their inferiors’_ and all that jazz. He also has an amusingly peculiar perspective on everything.

—

Steve: ‘ _What the hell is that?_ ’ 

… 

Me: ‘ _Um, a price-checker_?’ 

Steve: ‘ _oh. yeah. Stupid me, my head’s in the clouds. Sorry, anyway…_ ’

—

“Well, ma’a- Vanessa… It’s been a, uh, pleasure.”

“But I don’t WANT YOU TO GO, STEVE!!”

( _Don’t worry, that wasn’t me._ )Seb screams this out to the world and attaches himself to Steve’s leg. Steve looks slightly awkward until he simply smiles and bends down to speak with Seb. They talk for a while until Seb ends up wiping his nose on his sleeve and nodding enthusiastically. Steve walks over to his bike, sits down, takes a notebook from his pocket and scribbles something down. He beckons to me and with slight butterflies in my stomach ( _STOP IT, EVERYBODY JUST CALM. THE. HELL. DOWN. PLEASE_ ), I walk forwards. I get almost intimately close before he starts talking. ( _SHUT UP ME, YOU’RE NOT THAT CLOSE... ACTUALLY, YOU ARE…. STEP BACK, STEP BACK, BEEP BEEP BEEP, BACK THE FUCK UP!_ ) 

“I was wondering…if you would like to grab a coffee sometime? I mean, you don’t have to tell me now. Sebastian told me you would be cool with this, so… Here. Hopefully, I’ll see you soon.”

After pressing something into my hand and giving me a smile that could melt a winter, he put on his helmet and rode away. Vaguely, I thought that I must look like an idiot, smiling on the pavement. Eventually, I come back to earth and look at the piece of paper in my hand.

**(212) 555 0018 Steve**

_oH LoRD HAVE MERCY, HE DREW A FREAKIN’ SMILEY FACE!!!!_


End file.
